New co-head teachers at Durrington High School

Mr Allison and Mr Woodcock – who, combined, have more than 30 years’ experience of teaching and leading at Durrington – have taken the reins from Sue Marooney MBE, who retired from the headship role last summer.

Mr Woodcock said the pair were ‘incredibly proud and excited’ to be taking over the headship. "Having worked at Durrington for many years, we understand what has made us so successful,” he added. "This is encapsulated by our core values of kindness, aspiration, perseverance and pride. These values underpin all that we do and we know have been instrumental in the success of so many of our year-11 students who achieved outstanding results in their GCSEs this summer. We will continue to build on this approach and look forward to being amazed by the outstanding achievements of our students”

Mr Allison added: “Children only get one shot at education, so it is imperative that we ensure every single child has access to the best possible teaching, care, guidance and opportunities we can offer them. This matters to us, because it opens up endless opportunities for our students when they leave Durrington. Being a nationally recognised Research School supports us with this, as it allows us to shape what we do by the best available research evidence around teaching and learning. Our students deserve the very best when it comes to education and that’s what we will deliver for them.”

The co-headship model is not a common approach for schools. Mr Allison said: “School leadership is complex and multifaceted these days. Chris and I have both worked at Durrington for many years. Over these years we have developed a set of skills and experiences that very much compliment each other. With this in mind, co-headship seemed the obvious way forward, to enable us to build further on Durrington’s many recent successes and confidently lead the school onwards to even greater success in the future.”

Mr Woodcock said: “We have a very clear vision for Durrington – excellence for all, from all. We look forward to meeting and talking to prospective parents, carers and students about this in more detail at our open evening on October 6, and then our open mornings, taking place during the week of October 10.” Details of these events can be found at durringtonhighschool.co.uk